Broadway Legend Joined: 10/10/08
Well, more, "The Wild Party"'s Tony performance.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnBJHTvFSIU
And HOLY CRAP! Toni Colette can F'in' sing! I've never heard anyone modulate their voice like that! She needs to get back to Broadway ASAP (she'd be a great Violet in 9 to 5, no? Or the Baker's Wife?)
you JUST discovered "The Wild Party" ...?
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
She was great but the transcendental moment was Eartha Kitt planting herself center stage to sing "Moving Uptown." I peed.
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/10/08
Eartha's amazing, but what made ME piss was Toni's "wanna get wild".
Freakin' amazing.
So the superior Wild Party!
Welcome to the special society of people who truly understand it's amazingness.
edit: see, me and Tevye are in the society, we specifically said superior at the same time!
i recently played Gold in a production of this show. LaChiusa is a genius. Not to start a huge debate but...highly superior to Lippa's...maybe it's a "you-gotta-be-in-it" sorta thing. the recording is outstanding.
Earth Kitt on Rosie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6giQUInFovo
Toni Collette on Rosie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTPPyyrCuks
Broadway Star Joined: 7/17/08
This was an amazing production. Just the cast alone was pretty phenomenal, Toni Collette, Mandy Patinkin, Eartha Kitt, Tonya Pinkins, Norm Lewis, Mark Kudisch.
This was a tough year though for Toni Collette, losing both an Oscar and a Tony in the same season, and the nominations coming in for two extremely different roles. She is an astounding talent and I hope that she is back on Broadway sometime in the future.
Not to mention what she [and the rest of the cast] had to go through with Patinkin's "antics"
I think I remember her saying that turned her off to the stage very much.
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/10/08
Please fill me in on Patinkin's "antics". Why haven't I heard about this?
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/3/05
I wish every day that I had been able to see this production. People Like Us is one of my favorite songs ever, and Lowdown Down is as well.
"People Like Us" is probably one of my most favorite songs ever.
Broadway Star Joined: 7/17/08
There is very little in the score that I don't like, to be honest. I think it flows wonderfully and the tone follows the mood of the evening perfectly.
My top favorites in the score have to be "People Like Us," (so hauntingly beautiful), "Black Is a Moocher" (Tonya Pinkins just smolders so wonderfully), and "When It Ends" (nothing can beat that low growl that is Eartha Kitt's voice).
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/10/08
What did Patinkin do?
The gist of the story I heard is that he'd "stay in character" backstage, and be extremely abusive verbally.
Edit: I also seem to recall something about spitting? It's been a while since I've heard the details.
There have been threads on this before but they were made so long ago I'm sure they're gone forever.
From what I remember Patinkin decided to go the "method" route for this role and would randomly "improv" on stage. He would slap characters, spit in actors faces and make up his own vulgar one-line-remarks. He acted just like Burrs.
There's also a story of him locking himself in his dressing room and crying in a ball on the floor before the show because he "thought the lighting was wrong"
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/10/08
Just found this:
https://forum.broadwayworld.com/printthread.cfm?thread=955542&boardid=1
aha! I also found this!
https://forum.broadwayworld.com/printthread.cfm?thread=905747&boardid=0
I guess my momma was right, Google is my friend.
a very good friend indeed
https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.cfm?thread=941439&dt=10
https://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/6025/mpart.html
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/10/08
Wow. Mandy is a DICK.
"Patinkin's defenders say his outbursts and ad libs are part of his creative process, and that each time he has gone too far with another performer, Wolfe has spoken to him and the incident has not been repeated."
Well if the incident wasn't repeated, then why did it happen again?
It didn't. Different incidents occured .
Despite Mandy leaving a bad stamp on the memory of this show, I still have to repeat that Burrs, though being a bit too small, is a wonderfully written role and the show is an insanely amazing piece (and, once again, far superior to Lippa's 'whiney people belting to electric guitars in the 1920s').
Broadway Star Joined: 4/16/07
I agree with everyone who loves "People Like Us". That song has consistently been my top-played song on iTunes for like 2 years. I so wish I could have seen this live. The recording is one of my favorites.
This thread (and The United States of Tara) just stirred up my obsession with this show once again. I'm so in love with the music and the original performances, not to mentioned the outstanding and superbly layered book.
One of my favorite differences in LaChuisa's party over Lippa's that works in MJC's favor is that Burrs is the one who plans the party. He sets up his own demise, likely just because he wanted to put the spark back into his relationship and hold on to the one woman he thought was the only woman for him. So heartbreaking.
Collette is one of the few people who gave a full out performance on the cast recording. She doesn't hold back anything: she lets it all go. And it's breathtaking. Love this version. Having been in Lippa's and owning a copy of the Lachiusa libretto, I prefer LaChiusa's much more. There's just something more fulfilling about it.
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/21/06
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